History talks and events 12-18 February 2018

Upcoming family history talks and events in Scotland, 12 - 18 February 2018

Note that there may be a small charge for some of these events, and some may be for members only. We will be publishing lists of upcoming talks and events regularly - if you are organising a talk or event relating to Scottish genealogy or history, please let us know and we will be happy to add your events to our list.

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Monday, February 12 2018, 7pm - 9pm

Death in the New Town

Prof Ken Donaldson

Venue: Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh Museum

Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh

£2. Death in the New Town: Silicosis in the 19th Century
For 2018 we are delighted to introduce a series of intimate talks taking a look behind the scenes at Surgeons Hall Museums, entitled #SpeakToTheSpecialist. Professor Ken Donaldson, Surgeons’ Hall Museums Senior Research Fellow, will introduce the series by discussing his latest research here at the museums. The building of the Edinburgh New Town, from the mid-18th to the mid-19th centuries, represented an advance in harmonious and elegant town planning, now recognised world-wide. A large number of Stonemasons gathered in Edinburgh to build the New Town and there have been sporadic reports that an outbreak of silicosis/tuberculosis occurred amongst them. Stonemasons were known, from early times, to suffer from inhaling stone dust leading to silicosis, a scarring lung disease that is potentially lethal and can lead to cancer. Using contemporary accounts of the New Town incident and we uncovered evidence showing that a major epidemic did in fact occur. We believe that a number of factors related to working stone in Edinburgh conspired to cause the epidemic. We have also found lungs from Edinburgh Stonemasons in the collection of the museums that confirm the presence of silicosis. This talk will describe the nature of this unique public health incident, its significance and impact and how silicosis still continues to occur in Stonemasons. The talk will last about 60min and the Museums will be open for viewing until 9pm for ticket holders only.

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Tuesday, February 13 2018, 7.30 pm

Burntisland's Industrial Heritage

Bill Dewar

Venue: Volunteer House (Vonef Centre) in 69 Crossgate Cupar KY15 5AS

Fife Family History Society

Tea/coffee and biscuits included. Members entry free - Non members very welcome entry £2 for refreshments. Phone Dave Reid on 01333 350557 for any queries re talks.

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Tuesday, February 13 2018, 7.30 pm

The History of the Victoria Hall

Keith Hart

Venue: Buchan Hotel, Ellon

Ellon and District Heritage Society

Entrance £3

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Tuesday, February 13 2018, 7.30 pm - 9.30 pm

Britannia Panoptican

Judith Bowers

Venue: Masonic Halls, Collier Street, Johnstone

Johnstone Historical Society

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Wednesday, February 14 2018, 2.15 pm

Terrorists in Long Dresses: the Scottish Suffragettes

Ajay Close

Venue: D'Arcy Thompson Zoology Museum, Carnelley Building, University of Dundee

Abertay Historical Society

There will be a small charge for this lecture

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Wednesday, February 14 2018, 7 pm

The Trafficking of Musical Instruments in Georgian and Victorian Edinburgh

Dr Jenny Nex & Dr Lance Whitehead

Venue: Augustine Church, George IV Bridge, Edinburgh

The Old Edinburgh Club

A multiplicity of sources is required to assess the movement of musical instruments into and out of Edinburgh during the 18th and 19th centuries, but the Leith Port Books provide an important foundation for this work. The Glen Account Book offers the perspective of an individual firm, revealing their relationships with both London makers and local craftspeople, all situated within the wider musical networks of Edinburgh cultural society.
Dr Jenny Nex is Curator of Edinburgh University's musical instrument collection and is an active researcher, lecturer and musician.
Dr Lance Whitehead has been a school music teacher, museum curator and crime scene investigator. He is now a church organist, journal editor and independent researcher, and also tutors in the music departments of the University of Edinburgh and Napier University.
Free to members, £5 for guests. Disabled access and hearing loop

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Wednesday, February 14 2018, 7.30 pm

Register of Corrected Entries

Ken Nisbet

Venue: Smith Museum and Art Gallery

Central Scotland Family History Society

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Wednesday, February 14 2018, 7.45 pm

The Kaiser's Pirate

Kenneth Colville

Venue: RAF Club, Ardgowan Square, Greenock

Inverclyde Historical Society

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Thursday, February 15 2018, 5.15 pm

The creation of legal antiquity in Late Medieval Scotland

Dr Alice Taylor (King’s College, London)

Venue: Room G.13, Doorway 4, Old Medical School

University of Edinburgh

The Scottish History research seminars take place throughout the academic year and are open to all.

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Thursday, February 15 2018, 7.30 pm

Women Pilots of WWII

Roy Johnstone

Venue: Abbey Church Hall, Abbey Park Place, Dunfermline

Dunfermline Historical Society

Visitors are charged a fee of £2.00 per meeting and are made very welcome.

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Thursday, February 15 2018, 7.30 pm

A Survey of a Multi-Period Settlement

Roland Spencer-Jones - Chairman, North of Scotland Archaeology Society - Strathpeffer

Venue: Brora Community Centre

Clyne Heritage Society

Urchany, near Beauly, from the Bronze Age to 1871

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Thursday, February 15 2018, 7.30 pm

TBC

Tom Graham

Venue: Portland Church hall, South Beach, Troon

Troon & Ayrshire Family History Society

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Thursday, February 15 2018, 7:30 pm

Workshop

David Weir

Venue: Heritage Centre, Paisley

Renfrewshire Family History Society

Follow up to October’s workshop – David Weir (Heritage Co-ordinator Renfrewshire Council) will provide appropriate Family History material from the Council’s Archives.

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Friday, February 16 2018, 7.30 pm

The Naval Reserve in the Highlands and Islands

Dr. Ben Thomas

Venue: Eden Court, Bishops Rd, Inverness IV3 5SA

Gaelic Society of Inverness

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Friday, February 16 2018, 7.30 pm - 9.30 pm

The Naval Reserve in the Highlands and Islands

Dr Ben Thomas

Venue: Eden Court, Bishops Rd, Inverness IV3 5SA

Gaelic Society of Inverness

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